Braden Eves is congratulated by Exclusive Autosport team owner Michael Duncalfe after wheeling the Cambridge/Exclusive Autosport sponsored No. 91 PM-18 to a win in the 2021 Indy Pro 2000 season-opener Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

By Steve Wittich

The second chapter in Braden Eves’ storybook return to the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper featured a dominant green to checkered flag victory and returned to the top step of the series podium.

The 21-year-old, who started on the inside of the front row, got a jump on the field and was able to drive away from his Exclusive Autosport teammate Artem Petrov, who finished on an Indy Pro 2000 podium for the seventh time.

“That was just amazing. It’s so hard to pass here so I knew that if I got through the first lap, I should be okay,” said the 2019 USF2000 champion. “Winning the season opener is big when you’re making a championship bid and that’s what we’re after this season. Before my USF2000 title, I won the first race as well and while I’d love to go four-for-four this year, like I did then, it’s going to be tough tomorrow. But I’m so happy, incredible job by Exclusive Autosport. Our first front row lock-out and our first one-two finish so massive thanks to the team. Thanks as well to Artem. We’ve worked hard all off-season and it really helps to have a good teammate to push each other. It’s so great to be back here with the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and with all the fans here – it adds a lot of emotion to the win.”

The win is Eves second in Indy Pro 2000, eighth on the Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires ladder, and the 11th in his North American junior open-wheel career.

Manuel Sulaiman (Juncos Racing) was the third podium driver, making it an all veteran podium.

Note: Scratch that all-veteran podium. During the post race inspection, the No. 22 Juncos Racing PM-18 of Sulaiman was found to violate Rule 14.31.1, which states:

14.31.1. Car Weight – The minimum car weight shall include all fuel, lubricants, coolants, cameras, Driver weight and meet the following minimums:

• (a) All Events – 1295 pounds. 

The disqualification moved Sulaiman’s Juncos Racing rookie teammate Reece Gold onto the final step of the podium. Cameron Shields, a DEForce Racing rookie, moved up to the fourth spot and was the highest finishing of the five single-car entries. Rounding out the top five was series newcomer Enaam Ahmed (RP Motorsport).

Eves’ win is Exclusive Autosport’s second trip to victory lane at Barber Motorsports Park. Parker Thompson won Race #1 in 2018. The podiums for Eves and Petrov are the third and fourth podiums at Barber Motorsports Park.

Sulaiman grabbed the 11th podium at Barber Motorsports Park for Juncos Racing.

The field completed 82 on-track passes. RP Motorsport newcomer Enaam Ahmed, with ten, overtakes, the busiest driver. Ahmed, a well-regarded shoe with worldwide experience, was the biggest mover during the race, gaining seven spots after starting 13th.

Pre-race note: Wyatt Brichacek, a Jay Howard Driver Development rookie, who turned in the fourth quickest lap time during qualifying for Indy Pro 2000 Grand Prix Of Alabama Presented By Cooper Tires Race #1 started at the back of the 17-car grid after being disqualified from qualifying for running afoul of rule 14.31.1, which reads:

14.31.1. Car Weight – The minimum car weight shall include all fuel, lubricants, coolants, cameras, Driver weight and meet the following minimums:
(a) All Events – 1295 pounds.

The 250 hp 2.0L engines for the first Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires race of the 2021 season were fired at 11:05 am (central).

After one lap behind the Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires pace car, the all-Exclusive Autosport front row of Eves and Petrov brought the eight rows (plus one) to the green flag.

The green flag waves from the Barber Motorsports Park starter’s stand to get the 2021 Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires season started Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

The field got through the first seven corners cleanly, with Petrov looking at Eves into Turn 8. The pole-sitter was able to hold the top spot. Behind the leaders – Kyffin Simpson, Enzo Fittipaldi, and Jack William Miller – disagreed over track space at the exit of the blind, downhill right-hander. Miller and Simpson ended up off the track, and all three drivers fell to the rear of the field. All three combatants were able to continue but were forced to pit road for repairs and fell down a lap to the leaders.

The running order after one lap was Eves, Petrov, McElrea, Sulaiman, Rasmussen, Gold, Shields, Ahmed, Yeany, Roe, Kaminsky, Brichacek, Lazier, Abel, Simpson, Fittipaldi, and Miller.

McElrea, Gold, Rasmussen, and Sulaiman fought through the last four corners before starting lap three. McElrea dropped from third to fifth, dropping to sixth on the next lap. An even bigger loser in that fight was reigning USF2000 champion Rasmussen, who fell to the 16th spot.

After 10 of the 25 laps, Eves’ lead over his teammate Petrov was 1.1 seconds adrift of the fellow series sophomore. Another second back was Juncos Racing’s Sulaiman. Reece Gold (Juncos Racing) and Cameron Shields (Turn 3 Motorsport) held down the fourth and fifth spot. McElrea was pressuring shields.

With ten laps remaining, Eves lead had increased to 1.9 seconds over Petrov. The second-place driver had stretched out to a 1.8-second gap over Sulaiman. The quickest driver on the track was Rasmussen, who was running two laps down.

On Lap 16, Roe began to drop back, with reports that his engine was not sounding as it should.

Eves lead over Petrov had grown to 3.2 seconds with five laps remaining. The gap among the top five was comfortable, but McElrea, who had damage from the earlier incident, was facing pressure from Ahmed. On the next lap, the RP Motorsport newcomer made the pass, moving into sixth.

Eves’ gap to his teammate Petrov when he took the checkered flag was 4.2 seconds.

On the last lap, Miller and Velocity Racing Development rookie Hunter Yeany got together on track with the pilot of No. 40 Miller Vinatieri Motorsports machine being assessed a 30-second post-race penalty for avoidable contact.

Indy Pro 2000 Race #1 at Barber Motorsports Park results

The S team Motorsports No. 22 of Yuven Sundaramoorthy on track at Barber Motorsports Park Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

By Steve Wittich

The 2021 Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires season kicked off with an impressive green-to-checkered flag victory by Pabst Racing veteran Yuven Sundaramoorthy.

The trip to victory lane for Sundaramoorthy was the 18-year-olds first USF2000 win. It’s the 24th win for a driver representing Pabst Racing.

“This feels so great, it’s been so long coming, so long in the works,” said Sundaramoorthy after getting out his Pabst Racing No. 22. “To finally do this, and to do it from pole, feels great. I didn’t get fast lap, so I didn’t get the grand slam of points, but I’ll take it! I knew Prescott would burn his tires up in the aero wash so I just waited for him to fall back and focused on putting my laps together with no mistakes. It was a lot of pressure so mistakes were my biggest worry, but everything worked out. And having my teammate on the podium, with plenty of points for the team, makes it that much better. The Pabst team put everything together and the Cooper tires held up perfectly.”

Continuing a streak of good runs that began at the end of the 2020 USF2000, Prescott Campbell (DEForce Racing) put early pressure on Sundaramoorthy but had to settle for second place, his second career USF2000 podium.

Josh Pierson put tremendous pressure on Campbell in the second half of the 20-lap race, but the Pabst Racing 15-year-old could not make the pass, finishing in third, his first career USF2000.

On an interesting note, all three podium drivers began their USF2000 careers with Exclusive Autosport.

Completing the all-veteran top five were d’Orlando (Cape Motorsports) and Christian Brooks (Exclusive Autosport).

The top finishing rookie was Kiwi Billy Frazer (Exclusive Autosport), who crossed the finish line in sixth place.

The win is first at Barber Motorsports Park for Pabst Racing, and the two podiums were the third and fourth at the Birmingham, Ala circuit for the Oconomowoc, Wisc. based team. Campbell’s podium is the first at Barber Motorsports Park for DEForce Racing.

The race featured 102 on-track passes, with Miller Vinatieri Motorsports rookie Kent Vaccaro leading the way, with nine overtakes.

Pole sitter for this afternoon’s race, Nolan Siegel (DEForce Racing), turned the quickest race lap. His 14th of 20 laps was timed at 81.5837 seconds, almost two seconds under the seven-year-old USF2000 track record during a race.

The 26 Elite Engine prepared 2.0L power plants were fired at 7:55 am. The skies were cloudy, and the ambient temperature was 57F when the front row of Sundaramoorthy and Campbell was shown the green flag to get the 2021 USF2000 season underway.

Sundaramoorthy, the pole-sitter, got a good jump on the rest of the field, and the 27 drivers got cleanly through the left-hand, down-hill Turn 1 and the first complete lap of the 2.3-mile, 17-turn natural terrain road course.

26 USF2000 entries navigate the Alabama Roller Coaster during the season-opening race at Barber Motorsports Park Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

Just after the first lap was completed, Rowe, Christie, and Round -Garrido had an incident in the Alabama Roller Coaster. The No. 99 Force Indy machine of Rowe stopped in the gravel in Turn 8, and the No. 92 Exclusive Autosport machine of Round-Garrido had significant damage, stopping in Turn 2.

Rowe and Round-Garrido were checked and released by the INDYCAR medical staff.

Christie was able to continue but finished many laps down.

The running order under yellow was Sundaramoorthy, Campbell, Pierson, d’Orlando, Denmark, Brooks, Kohlbecker, Green, Frazer, Lee, Porto, Siegel, Nepveau, Vodanovich, Garg, Evans, Palmer, Sikes, Burke, Vaccaro, Castro, Stamer, Navarro, Rowe, Round-Garrido and Christie.

The green flag came back out to start lap six. The leader got through the first four laps with a lead, with Campbell putting pressure on Sundaramoorthy. The No. 22 took the defensive inside line and held off Campbell in the No. 11.

On Lap eight, Denmark went four wheels off in Turn 13, losing two spots, falling from fifth to eighth.

Things settled in for the next five laps, with Campbell hounding Sundaramoorthy upfront. Sundaramoorthy, who had led every lap, had a 0.6 second lead over Campbell after turning the race’s quickest lap. Pierson was right on the rear wing of Campbell in third.

d’Orlando was just over two seconds back in fourth place and was being pressured immensely by Brooks. Frazer, who was up six spots, was sixth, with Kohlbecker, Denmark, Green, and Porto rounding out the top ten.

With six laps remaining, former Exclusive Autosport teammates, Campbell and Pierson were battling for second, which allowed Sundaramoorthy to pull a 1.5-second gap upfront.

Behind the podium positions, d’Orlando, Brooks, and Frazer were nose-to-tail in fifth, sixth, and seventh.

Sundaramoorthy’s lead to start lap 17 was a comfortable 1.6 seconds. Campbell had pulled a half-second gap over Pierson in third. Behind them, d’Orlando, Brooks and Frazer were going hammer and tong for the fourth spot.

The pole-sitter took the white flag with a comfortable 2.1-second lead.

Note: The No. 6 of Bijoy Garg (Jay Howard Driver Development), who originally finished 14th, was disqualified for running afoul of rule:

14.31.1. Car Weight – The minimum car weight shall include all fuel, lubricants, coolants, cameras, Driver weight and meet the following minimums:

•  (a) All Events – 1295 pounds. 

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix Of Alabama Race #1 results

The second USF2000 race of the day is set to get the green flag at 3:50 pm. (central)

By Steve Wittich

For the sixth straight Road To Indy qualifying session, a different driver turned the pole-winning lap.

On late Friday afternoon, David Malukas became the sixth different driver to lead a Friday qualifying session at Barber Motorsports Park.

After just missing out on the pole in the morning session, the HMD Motorsports sophomore could pip his teammate and race #1 pole winner Linus Lundqvist.

Starting behind Malukas and Lundqvist are Andretti Autosport/Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport teammates Robert Megennis and Devlin DeFrancesco, who were within two-tenths of a second of the front row pairing.

Mirroring the other Road To Indy sessions, the final Indy Lights qualifying opportunity had a tight field with the top nine turning in laps within six-tenths of a second of the pole sitter.

When the second Indy Lights and final Road To Indy qualifying session of a busy Friday got underway, the ambient temperature was 68F, and the track temperature was 97.5F.

At the one-third pole of the half-hour session, Malukas held the provisional pole, with the top eight covered by less than half a second.

Malukas lap of 72.1473 seconds held down the provisional pole at the halfway point of the 30-minutes of qualifying.

That lap was six-tenths off the pole lap from this morning, but two-tenths of a second quicker than Sowery in second. Robert Megennis, Linus Lundqvist, and Sting Ray Robb rounded out the top five.

With seven minutes left in the session, the aptly sponsored DirtFish No. 24 of Benjamin Pedersen sent some trackside turf flying as he pushed to improve on his lap times.

With four minutes left in the session, lap times started to drop as the driver’s new Cooper Tire slicks began to get up to temperature.

Megennis was the first driver to move to the top of the timing screen on fresh tires, but the Andretti Autosport veteran’s time up top didn’t last long.

In the last three minutes of qualifying, the provisional pole traded hands between Malukas and Lundqvist four times, with Malukas taking the prize this time.

Indy Lights Grand Prix Of Alabama Presented by Cooper Tires qualifying #2 results

Saturday’s Indy Lights Grand Prix is set to get the green flag at 12:15 pm (central).

The Turtle Plastics/HMD Trucking sponsored No., 79 on track at Barber Motorsports Park Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

Christian Rasmussen, the newest Indy Pro 2000 pole-sitter on the track showing off the No. 1 livery of an Road To Indy champion. Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

A reg flag with four minutes remaining in the 20-minute session brought an early end to the second USF2000 qualifying session at Barber Motorsports Park.

The beneficiary of the red flag was Christian Rasmussen and Jay Howard Driver Development, who both scored their first Indy Pro 2000 poles. It’s the tenth career Road To Indy pole for the Danish driver.

Rasmussen’sRasmussen’s pole-winning lap in the JHDD, CSU | One Cure/Lucas Oil sponsored No. 1 was timed at 76.5270 seconds, leaving Braden Eves’ lap in the morning as the track record holding effort.

Joining Rasmussen on the front row is Pabst Racing sophomore Hunter McElrea, who improved one position from his third starting spot for Race #1.

The second row is Juncos Racing rookie Reece Gold and Eves (Juncos Racing), the pole sitter for Race #1.

Jacob Abel (Abel Motorsports) will start fifth, making it five teams in the top five.

When the second Indy Pro 2000 qualifying session of the day began, the ambient temperature at the circuit was 66F, and the track temperature of the 2.3-mile, 17-turn natural terrain road course was 102.4F

The early leader with five of twenty minutes expired was Juncos Racing rookie Reece Gold.

Gold’sGold’s teammate Manuel Sulaiman spun in Turn 1 after catching the aggressive kerbing. He could get the Telcel/Infinitum/WBC/Inteligentus/Anahuac sponsored No. 22 rolling, and the track remained green.

In the next five minutes, the last two USF2000 champions Eves and Rasmussen, spent time on the provisional pole.

Rasmussen held the provisional pole at the halfway point of qualifying with a lap timed at 76.5720 seconds. Eves, McElrea, Gold, and Simpson rounded out the top five.

In the next five minutes, Wyatt Brichacek moved into the top five.

Times started to drop as the drivers who put on fresh Cooper Tire slicks got them into the proper operating temperature. The first driver to improve

With four minutes remaining in the session, the red flag came out when the No. 11 of reigning F4 United States Championship champion contacted the barriers after a spin in Turn 13.

Indy Pro 2000 Grand Prix of Alabama presented by Cooper Tires Qualifying #2 Results (unofficial)

Indy Pro 2000 Grand Prix Of Alabama Presented By Cooper Tires Race #1 rolls off at 11:10 am on Saturday.

Nolan Siegel on the track at Barber Motorsports Park in his No. 10 DEForce Racing car (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)

By Steve Wtitich

Veteran Nolan Siegel led a DEForce Racing one-two-three in qualifying for Saturday afternoons Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Alabama.

Siegel’s lap at 80.9794 in the Menlo Ventures/Aero Paint Technologies sponsored No. 10 lowered the track record set by Yuven Sundaramoorthy in the morning qualifying session.

Siegel’s teammates Prescott Campbell and Kiko Porto, along with Force Indy rookie Myles Rowe were all within one-tenth of the pole.

It’s the second career USF2000 pole for the 16-year-old. The pole win is the sixth USF2000 pole for DEForce Racing.

The top 11 were within a half-second of Siegel, and 21 of 26 drivers were within one second of the pole.

The green flag for the second Friday USF2000 qualifying session came out at 1:50 pm. After a cloudy first qualifying session, the sun was out, the ambient temperature was 66F, and the track temperature had just pushed over 100F for the first time today.

Myles Rowe (Force Indy) and Kiko Porto (DEForce Racing) spent most of the first half of the 20-minute session trading the provisional pole.

Rookie Rowe held the provisional pole when the red flag came out before the halfway point of qualifying. The No. 8 Jay Howard Driver Development USF-17 machine of Jackson Lee came to a stop on the track in Turn 8.

The AMR INDYCAR Safety Team flat towed him back to pit road, and the green flag came back out with just over five minutes remaining to get on a flyer.

Rowe, with a lap at 81.3473 seconds, held the provisional pole with Josh Pierson (Pabst Racing), Kiko Porto (DEForce Racing), Yuven Sundaramoorthy (Pabst Racing), Jace Denmark (Pabst Racing), Nolan Siegel (DEForce Racing), Thomas Nepveu (Cape Motorsports), Prescott Campbell (DEForce Racing), Christian Brooks (Exclusive Autosport) and Ely Navarro (DEForce Racing).

The Cooper Tires didn’t have enough time to cool down, and drivers immediately improved on their lap times.

Veterans, Siegel, Porto, Campbell, Pierson, and d’Orlando all surpassed Rowe on their first laps at speed.

Siegel’s eighth of ten laps in the session was good enough to hold off his teammates.

Rowe, the early provisional pole sitter, had fallen to eighth but recovered to fourth on his final lap of qualifying.

Qualifying #2 for Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Alabama

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Alabama Race #1 rolls off bright and early at 8 am (central) on Saturday morning.

The S team Motorsports No. 22 of Yuven Sundaramoorthy on track at Barber Motorsports Park Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

For the first time in his 35 race USF2000 career, Yuven Sundaramoorthy, a Pabst Racing veteran, will start from the pole. The inside front row start is not the 18-year-old’s North American Junior Open Wheel first. The University Of Wisconsin – Madison freshman, started a pair of F1600 Championship Series races from the pole.

Sundaramoorthy’s pole lap of 81.1201-seconds breaks the seven-year-old track record by almost two seconds. The previous track record – 83.009 seconds – was held by Michael Epps (Belardi Auto Racing) during the 2014 Cooper Tires Winter Fest.

“This is amazing, especially with the spin I had this morning, said Sundaramoorthy after qualifying. “I’ve been at this for three years so to finally get a pole feels so good; I hope it means that there are more good things to come. This track is all about confidence: it’s all high-speed corners and long-duration corners, so you have to get the car perfect, which the Pabst crew did, and then me putting the lap together. I’m happy with pole but I’m looking to convert from first position. It’s so hard to pass here, so getting a good start will be key.”

The pole is the 26th career inside front row start for Pabst Racing. The Oconomowoc, Wisc. based team placed all three of their drivers in the top five, with Josh Pierson starting behind his teammate on the pole and rookie Jace Denmark starting directly behind Pierson.

Starting outside of the trio of Pabst Racing drivers are Prescott Campbell (DEForce Racing), Michael d’Orlando (Cape Motorsports), and Spike Kohlbecker (Cape Motorsports).

The field is incredibly close; the top 11 are within three-tenths-of-a-second of Sundaramoorthy. The top 20 are within one second of the quickest lap.

The only red flag came out with just over two minutes remaining when Sundaramoorthy and Simon Sikes (Legacy Autosport) both spun. Both drivers lost their quickest lap of the session, but Sundaramoorthy’s second-best lap was good enough to keep the pole.

Qualifying #1 for Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Alabama

The second USF2000 qualifying session is set to get the green flag at 1:50 pm (central) this afternoon.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Alabama Race #1 rolls off bright and early at 8 am (central) on Saturday morning.

Linus Lundqvist, pole sitter for Indy Lights Grand Prix Of Alabama Presented by Cooper Tires Race #1 on track in the HPD/Global Racing Group/FX Airguns/Paytrim/JULA sponsored No. 26 Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

By Steve Wittich

Three Road To Indy qualifying sessions done. Three new Barber Motorsports Park track record laps in the books.

Global Racing Group w/HMD Motorsports rookie Linus Lundqvist set a lap of 71.5149 seconds late in the first Indy Lights qualifying session in 18 months to grab his first career Indy Lights and Road To Indy pole. The Swede is no stranger to starting on the pole at Barber Motorsports Park. Making three inside front row starts in the Formula Regional Americas Championship at the Birmingham, Ala. track.

“It feels good to give this one back to the team, I know how hard they’ve worked this winter to make sure we have a good car,” said Lundqvist. “It was just up to me to do my job today, and it was enough to get pole. There are guys in the series who have a lot of miles in these cars so to be on top in my first qualifying is great, but from day one I’ve had the support and the knowledge from the team and the mechanics to come up to speed. It’s a very different car than anything I’ve driven before but I won here last year (in FR Americas) so it’s just about maximizing everything.”

Lundqvist will be joined on the front row by teammate sophomore David Malukas (HMD Motorsports), his best career Indy Lights start.

Starting on the second row is the 2019 Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires champion Kyle Kirkwood and Lundqvist’s Global Racing Group w/HMD teammate Benjamin Pedersen.

Ten of the baker’s dozen entries were within one second of Lundqvist.

The first of two 30-minute Friday qualifying sessions for the Indy Lights Grand Prix of Alabama, Presented By Cooper, got started at precisely 11 am. When qualifying began, the ambient temperature was 59F, and the track temperature was 84.4F.

The front row starting Global Racing Group w/HMD and HMD Motorsports teammates spent the first half of the qualifying session trading the provisional pole back and forth.

Kirkwood, Sowery, and Megennis were the other regulars in the top five in the first 15-minutes of track time.

Malukas, with a lap timed at 71.9907 seconds, held the top spot at the halfway point of the first qualifying session. The Chicago, Ill.-based driver was the only pilot under 72 seconds.

With five minutes left in the session, Lundqvist went to the top of the timing screens and the provisional pole for the final time, improving on his pole-winning

qualifying #1 results

The Indy Lights drivers will be back on track at 3 pm (central) for their second qualifying session of the day.

Saturday’s Indy Lights Grand Prix is set to get the green flag at 12:15 pm (central).

The Cambridge/Exclusive Autosport sponsored No. 91 of Braden Eves on track at Barber Motorsports Park Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

Braden Eves (Exclusive Autosport) began his comeback Indy Pro 2000 tour in the best possible way – grabbing the pole and setting the Barber Motorsports Park track record in his first official race back. After a serious season-ending incident on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the 2019 USF2000 champion, who is making his first official appearance back in Indy Pro 2000, used a last-minute flyer to third career Indy Pro 2000 pole position. It’s the Ohioan’s eighth career Road To Indy pole and the ninth in his North American Junior Open Wheel Career.

“That’s a perfect way to start the season, P1 in race one qualifying – especially after what happened last year, with our season getting cut short,” said an enthused Eves. “It’s a big confidence boost, to know that I’m right where I left off. The team did a fantastic job, giving me a car to put out front. To have the front-row lockout, we couldn’t have done better. I’m extremely happy with the car the Exclusive Autosport crew gave me and know we will have the pace tomorrow to have a successful day.”

Eves’ track record-setting lap of 76.1542 seconds is over one-tenth-of-a-second quicker than a lap turned by former Exclusive Autosport driver Parker Thompson in 2018.

Artem Petrov was only 0.0747 seconds behind his teammate, rounding out an all Exclusive Autosport front row.

Starting on the second row will be Pabst Racing veteran Hunter McElrea and Jay Howard Driver Development sophomore Wyatt Brichacek, who continued his stellar month a Barber Motorsports Park.

Continuing a theme from testing, the Indy Pro 2000 field is exceptionally close, with the top nine drivers all turning laps within a half-second of Eves and the top 16 all within one second.

The first of two Friday qualifying sessions for the season-opening Indy Pro 2000 Grand Prix of Alabama presented by Cooper Tires doubleheader got underway at 10:25 am. The Alabama sky was cloudy, with the ambient temperature at 58F and the track temperature at 78.1F.

All 17 pm-18s powered by Elite Engine 2.0L power plants quickly took to the 2.3-mile, 17-turn natural terrain road course to set the grid for Saturday’s Indy Pro 2000 race.

Juncos Racing Reece Gold and Manuel Sulaiman, along with Pabst Racing rookie Hunter McElrea traded the provisional pole numerous times in the first half of the 1,2000-minute session.

Sulaiman, at 76.6256 seconds, held the top spot with 10 of the 20-minute qualifying session remaining. Sulaiman, multiple-time Indy Pro 2000 pole sitter in 2020, was followed in the top five by Gold, McElrea, Braden Eves (Exclusive Autosport), and fellow Juncos Racing driver Kyffin Simpson.

Sulaiman continued to set quicker times early in the second half of the session, which proved vital when Rasmussen improved to the second-fastest time on his fifth lap of the session.

Brichacek, who led three of the five sessions during spring training at Barber Motorsports Park, was the first driver to move up the running order in the last five minutes of qualifying.

McElrea moved to provisional pole with four minutes remaining, with a lap that was only two-hundredths shy of the lap record.

Parker Thompson’s three-old track record set with Exclusive Autosport didn’t last much longer before the current “Eh-Team” driver grabbed the provisional pole.

The timing green lit up green in the final two minutes of the first qualifying session, with drivers continuing to go quicker.

With one minute remaining in the session, Petrov’s teammate Eves grabbed the provisional top spot, going even quicker on his next lap.

Indy Pro 2000 Grand Prix of Alabama presented by Cooper Tires Qualifying #1 Results (unofficial)

The second Indy Pro 2000 qualifying session is set to get the green flag at 2:25 pm (central) this afternoon.

Indy Pro 2000 Grand Prix of Alabama presented by Cooper Tires gets underway at 11:10 am (central) on Saturday.

Artem Petrov comes to the attention of his Exclusive Autosport crew during Indy Pro 2000 spring training Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

If you needed more proof of just how competitive Indy Pro 2000 will be in 2021, look no further than the final test session before official practice gets started.

Exclusive Autosport’s Artem Petrov turned the quickest lap at 77.2613 seconds, but he had his rearview mirrors full of the rest of the field. The top five were within one-tenth of a second, and the top 12 were within a half-second of the veteran.

Five teams – Exclusive Autosport (2), Pabst Racing (1), RP Motorsport (1), Juncos Racing (1), and Jay Howard Driver Development (1) – are represented in the fastest six drivers.

The entire session was run under green flag conditions, with the 17 drivers completing 487 circuits of the 2.3-mile, 17-turn natural terrain road course.

Exclusive Autosport’s Braden Eves was the busiest driver in the session, completing 35 laps, but he wasn’t the only active pilot. All but one of the 17 entries completed at least 25 laps.

Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires test session #2 at Barber Motorsports Park – April 15, 2021

Kiko Porto on track at Barber Motorsports Park. The DEForce Racing sophomore led the final USF2000 test Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

By Steve Wittich

Mirroring spring training at Barber Motorsports Park just over a week ago, the final test session before the chase for Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship was dominated by veterans.

Sophomore Kiko Porto (DEForce Racing) led the way in a session that saw eight of the top ten times set by second or third-year drivers. The Brazilian’s fastest lap was timed at 81.6006 seconds, which is well below the track record.

Within seven-hundredths-of a second of Porto was his teammate, third-year driver Nolan Siegel and the quickest driver during spring training, Christian Brooks (Exclusive Autosport).

Rounding out the top five was Pabst Racing rookie Jace Denmark, who was also the quickest newcomer in spring training and the third DEForce Racing driver Prescott Campbell.

After a quiet first test session, it should not be surprising that the second one-hour session allotted to the 26 USF2000 entries to prepare for the Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix Of Alabama doubleheader was much busier.

The 25 drivers with operating transponders that took to the 2.3-mile, 17-turn natural terrain road course completed 587 laps (1,350.1 miles). Cape Motorsports rookie Evan Stamer was the busiest of the group, completing 31 circuits. Exclusive Autosport newcomer Matthew Round-Garrido turned laps, but he was experiencing transponder issues.

The top ten pilots were within a half-second of Porto, who turned his quickest lap on his 17th of 17 laps during the session. The top 20 drivers were within one second of the leader.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship test session #2 at Barber Motorsports Park – April 15, 2021